Drinking and Driving Deaths:

Every 30 minutes someone in the US is killed by a drunk driver!

In 2006, an estimated 17,602 people died in alcohol-related traffic crashes—an average of one every 30 minutes.

Since 1980 (the year M.A.D.D. was founded), alcohol-related traffic fatalities have decreased by about 44 percent, from over 30,000 per year to under 17,000. MADD has helped save over 300,000 lives.

Not all Drunk Driving Accidents end in murder…

Every 24 hours 1,620 people are injured or maimed by a drunk driver!

Example:

Jacqueline Saburido was taking a break from college and industrial engineering classes when she came to the United States from Venezuela to study English. A drunk driving crash changed her life completely. Reggie Stephey, an 18-year-old high school student, was on his way home from drinking beer with some buddies. He struck the car carrying Jacqueline and three other friends. Two died on impact and Jacqueline on one other survived.  

Before	After

Comparing Loss of Life Statistics:

Drinking and Driving vs. War

Are drinking and driving deaths really as bad as we think?We have certainly lost more soldiers to war than to drunk drivers, right?Well, let’s do some math. Let’s compare the number ofUS lives lost in our three major wars to the number of lives lost from drunk drivers:

Soldiers Killed in WW I+WW II +Vietnam:594,161
DUI Related Deaths Since WW I:1.7 Million(estimate)

Current War:
2007:Soldiers Killed inIraq:4,013
2007:DUI Deaths: Estimated17,600(41% of all traffic fatalities)

Looking at these numbers it seems so hard to believe that a bigger killer than war continues on and on and on… repeat offenders get back on our streets over and over until they eventually kill an innocent person. Then it’s too late. How about we just not let drunk driver drive? That would be a logical first step.

Note: the above war comparison is in no way meant to insult the brave solders that have fought and died for our country. It’s used only as one of several shocking perspectives. Please check back for more statistical information and comparisons.

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